Beauty Quote by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
“Some feelings are quite untranslatable; no language has yet been found for them. They gleam upon us beautifully through the dim twilight of fancy, and yet when we bring them close to us, and hold them up to the light of reason, lose their beauty all at once, as glow worms which gleam with such a spiritual light in the shadows of evening, when brought in where the candles are lighted, are found to be only worms like so many others.”
About This Quote
Source Poem: Voices of the Night, 1845
Intangible emotions resist precise description; when examined analytically they lose their mystique.
In simple terms: Hard-to-name feelings fade under rational scrutiny.
Key Takeaway
Embrace mystery, don’t over‑analyze.
Themes
emotion
language
beauty
philosophy
Mood
melancholic
contemplative
Type
literary
philosophical
When to use this quote
- art criticism
- personal reflection
- creative writing
- psychotherapy
Key Concepts
ineffability
subjectivity
aesthetic experience
Questions to Reflect On
- How do you balance feeling and reason?
- When does naming a feeling help or hinder?
A Different Perspective
Rational analysis can strip away the poetic essence of feeling.
